I was sure she had him, but the boss dodged Camilla’s attack. I thought for certain that its giant form couldn’t move, but I was wrong. It seemed to squeeze its body together as it let out a jet of liquid, using the force to jump aside.
It was a movement that defied all expectations, and left Camilla, who had put her all into that one attack, completely open.
The boss wasn’t going to let this opportunity pass. Its body swayed and it unleashed every tentacle it had. This was the ultimate strike, and it was painfully obvious that the boss saw Camilla as a threat.
She used all her strength to block, but failed to do so in time. The attacks hit her from all directions, sending her tumbling to the ground. Camilla’s body skipped across the water like a rock before sinking below the lake’s surface.
“Camilla!” My body moved on its own, leaving the injured in Heidemarie’s care.
“[Pump up: Dreimal!]”
My instincts screamed that Camilla needed to be saved at all costs. There was no time to consider my chances of success. I cast buffs throughout my body, ignoring the MP it would consume as I swooped in to save her, the boss chasing after me.
I supported her large frame on my shoulders. She was a woman, so it would have been better to princess carry her, but I was too panicked to employ such resourcefulness.
“Abel! Cover me!” I shouted as soon as I caught sight of him. Our gazes locked onto each other, and he immediately realized what I was trying to do.
“I give you permission to cast your buffs!”
“You’re enchanted!”
I rushed behind Abel. A second passed, and I felt no attacks. Abel had managed to repel them all.
“Wim! I’ll keep the boss at bay!”
I set Camilla down. “Are you all right?! Can you hear me?!”
“Boy…? Run. Don’t worry about who will sacrifice themselves. Just run.” She was still conscious, but I could tell she had broken bones all throughout her body. Camilla had only managed to keep her eyes open because she was special—a normal man would already be dead.
“Who’s…left?”
Her hollow voice was full of regret. Nobody had run. None of us had the strength. It took all we had just to defend against the onslaught of tentacles and rescue the injured. We had failed to accomplish what we should have done with the time Camilla bought us by risking her life.
“We’re all still here. None of us could escape.”
“I see…”
“But everyone’s still alive. We’ll all make it home together.”
“Aha ha… You’re still green around the ears, boy. Listen. Leave me and the other injured behind. The young and energetic should disperse…and run.”
“But we can’t!”
“Look around you, fool!”
Everyone was struggling to withstand the tentacles. We had no hope of victory, nor survival. Yet everyone was repelling the tendrils with everything they had in a desperate struggle to stay alive.
“With your buffs, I can at least serve as a meat shield. Please, just fix my major bones. I, Camilla, give you, Wim, permission to cast your granting magic on me.” She stood up, her sturdy frame swelling with life despite the circumstances.
Why the hell was I hesitating? Those who had known Camilla for much longer than I had were gritting their teeth and bearing it. It was foolish for a newbie member like me to be screaming and crying. It was rude, even, an affront to my dignity as an abenteurer.
Look at their stoic expressions, Wim! Everyone else had made their peace, even felt pride in it.
I told myself hesitation was a waste of our precious time. I was wasting Camilla’s life! I sneered at myself as a stubborn fool.
Yet I couldn’t stop myself. Was it because of what Heidemarie had told me? No, that wasn’t it. It was me—my own thoughts. I couldn’t stop the howling in my heart. I had always forced them down, but for some reason, I couldn’t now.
I don’t want this. This is terrible! I can’t accept it! I don’t want to! my heart screamed.
This was true despair—everyone knew it. This boss far exceeded our expectations, and if we failed to sacrifice a huge portion of our members, more of us would die.
Nachtlibelle wasn’t a party that could just be annihilated.
I took a deep breath. I wasn’t a respectable person. I didn’t talk much with others, nor did I fit in. I was a spineless sycophant with dead eyes and a creepy smile who always slouched. I was picky. My personality was atrocious, and I wasn’t just vaguely aware of that. I knew painfully well that I was the type of person who would naturally be banished from his party.
Camilla wasn’t someone we could sacrifice. I had to protect her! I could die thousands of times, and it would never atone for losing her! She was just that amazing!
She was the wonderful person who had accepted me.
Camilla had promised that Nachtlibelle would return intact, but the moment that became impossible, she had overturned that decision.
That had been a mistake. I wasn’t a real member of Nachtlibelle, after all.
‹Everyone!› We still had one option left. I sent out a universal transmission. ‹This is Wim. Um, I’m sorry, but I’m going to defy Camilla’s orders.› This perhaps wasn’t the best choice, but it was the best I could make. Basically, there was no other way, so it was fine, right?
‹I’m going to stop this boss. Please focus on defending the best that you can, and once you find a good time to retreat, do so.›
“[Halt.]” I cut off Camilla’s buffs and cast a debuff on her. Giving a support caster permission to use granting magic on you made you vulnerable to this kind of abuse. Camilla fell to the floor, and it was clear from her expression that she didn’t know what was happening to herself.
“I’ll be the one to defeat this thing.”
Everyone was baffled. The debuff left Camilla unable to move, and her expression shifted beyond mere anger or surprise.
I knew I was stepping out of line, that there was no taking this back. But it was probably fine. This wouldn’t hurt Nachtlibelle, and if I failed in the end, I still would have succeeded at buying them some time.
Maybe one of my screws was loose. I was usually the type who always followed the rules.
Oh, so that’s it. It was all because they told me to live as I wanted.